These are the people in your neighborhood

Magnet #1279 - Starbucks coffee

I moved to New York to become anonymous. No, really. Growing up one of a handful of Asians in a small Southern town, people tended to know who you were. I'm not saying I was Justin Bieber, but you try buying alcohol at Food Lion without them saying, oh, are you Dr. so-and-so's daughter?

So yeah, on the pro list for moving to NYC after college was anonymity walking down the street. It's why I never knew my neighbors until late last year - indeed, the neighborhood restaurant delivery guys knew me more than my neighbors did.

Right. So ya'll know I have this new gig, right? In this new neighborhood? Turns out, it's actually becoming a real neighborhood, as I start to get to know all the delis within a two-block radius. So much so that the chick at my favorite deli called my breakfast purchase "my usual."

Sigh. I have a usual.

Totally freaked me out. I hate when people know too much about me (this magnetblog notwithstanding, apparently).

I'm still trying to figure out if this is a good thing, that they know exactly what I order every time I come in, almost without me having to order.

What keeps me going back in spite of having been made?

They seriously make the best. iced. coffee. on. the. planet. No joke.

My biggest pet peeve for iced coffee is when they stick some ice in the cup, then the sugar, and then the milk and then the coffee. Which means that the sugar has not a chance in hell of melting. I supertotally hate that. Like I want to walk away from the person making it, even if I've already paid for it. Ugh.

But my guy at this deli? Totally has the coffee and sugar mixed together in a separate pitcher and then mixes in the milk and ice. So. Damn. Good. It might be better than iced tea. From the South.

Ace Deli on 28th. Between 5th and Mad. Go. Now.

Awww. Sorry, Starbucks, I bet you thought this magnetpost was about you. Actually, here's a good article on Starbucks' secret menu that @avanveck forwarded on to me earlier this week.

Oddly, there was NO White Wicker Basket listed.

"And get a white wicker basket for Joy..."

Magnet #1142 - Starbucks Coffee

Little did we know that that text would spark the funniest team story to come out of our golf tournament last month.

We sent our youngest teammate out to the store to run some errands. We texted him to pick up some sharpies, some paper towels, do the daily Starbucks run, and get a white wicker basket for Joy.

An hour later, when the dude showed up in front of me with a tray of a lone venti cup marked JOY, I could only look in askance at him. Particularly since I hadn't ordered a coffee. He hands me the tray and I kinda back away, saying, but I didn't get that. He looks at me and says, "Yeah, the people at Starbucks didn't know what a White Wicker Basket was, so they made me this."

Here's the thing. Ya'll should all want to play poker with me, because I am incapable of keeping a straight face. So I can only imagine the look of utter confusion at his utter confusion, and then my barely muffled laughter as I slowly realized that I was being handed what he thought was a white wicker basket. Even the dude who sent him on the errand had his head cocked slightly, wondering what was going on. And as we dissolved into laughter, I said, "But I wanted a White. Wicker. Basket."

"Yeah, this is it. I showed them the text and everything, but they were still confused, and this is what they gave me."

Tears were welling up in my eyes from the laughter, so I had no choice but to say thanks and take the coffee. I then proceeded to walk around with it for the next couple hours, giggling periodically, in between bouts of hysterical laughter.

I stopped him again a bit later, and I was like, "Ummm, so we're clear...I wanted a White. Wicker. Basket."

He looks at me, and goes, "Yeah, I know. But the Starbucks people didn't know what it was. I'm sorry if it wasn't what you wanted." I giggled again and walked away.

It wasn't until later that night in the office, that we actually went through the White. Wicker. Basket. story again, with the same result. Finally we took pity on the poor boy and Googled images of a WWB...to which he replied,

"Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh."

And the light went on.

In the end, you have to excuse him - he's a boy. How many boys in their early 20s know right off the bat what a white wicker basket is? And, within the context of the texting, yeah, maybe we should have been more specific between the Starbucks run and the WWB for Joy.

Still, it provided hours of entertainment and joyous laughter. Literally. It's why I could NOT pass up this magnet. I just couldn't.

Tell you what though. I'm very sad I'll never be able to recreate that drink, because that White Wicker Basket?

Was the best damn Starbucks coffee I've ever had in my life.

Much too young

Magnet #339 - Coffee

Remember back in 1997, when Garth Brooks played that free concert in Central Park? At the time, I'd been in NYC for only two years - I could count on one hand the number of country music fans I'd met, and they had just shut down one of the city's only country music radio stations.

So when they announced the concert, I was absolutely convinced that I'd be the only one in Central Park. In fact, I was worried that it'd be a huge snafu for Garth, that no one was gonna show up.

Glad to say that I was wrong - I saw somewhere that a quarter of a million people were there, including me and this friend of mine who had just moved up from NC.

The next week at work, I was raving about the concert, and the only other Asian girl at work heard about it and says, wait - you went to the Garth concert? Why didn't you say anything? I wanted to see Garth!

And a fast friendship was born.

Turns out, she was a big fan, but couldn't find anyone else who wanted to go. We'd been working at the same company for at least a few months, but didn't even know the other liked country music. Proof that you just never know who's around the next corner. Little did I know back then that the chick who went to the concert with me and this Asian chick who grew up in the big city but was still a country fan, would become my steadfast roadtrip buddies.

So why the coffee mug?

Because before she met me, she didn't like coffee. But she'd wait patiently while I waited in line for my mocha frappes at Starbucks or whatever coffee shop was nearest.

Now, she has a coffeemaker, and the last time I was at her place, I found out she hoards flavored Coffeemate in her fridge.

Happy birthday, Erika!